


and i'll be here, when it all feels too big, 'til it all feels so small

by tommyshepherdd (gaysupersoldiers)



Category: Justice League - All Media Types, The Flash (Comics), The Flash - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kid Fic, baby thadd, barry finds a baby thadd and just keeps him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:42:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25442587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gaysupersoldiers/pseuds/tommyshepherdd
Summary: “Shit.” Barry said, eyes widening, “What am I going to tell my wife.”“Shit!” Thadd parroted cheerfully.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 46





	and i'll be here, when it all feels too big, 'til it all feels so small

Something in the back of Barry’s mind insisted that he check the warehouse he had heard Thawne had been going in and out of. Of course, the older man was gone by then, long gone by the looks of it, but Barry couldn’t shrug off the niggling worry. He had watched the warehouse for several days, memorizing Thawne’s schedule, but on the fifth day that he didn’t return he decided to enter. 

Batman had told him it was just an abandoned property possessed by a foreign shipping company. That Thawne had probably stumbled upon it by coincidence, and there was nothing important there. But the unsettling feeling would not quit. 

The first floor did seem to be just as Bruce described it. Filthy. Empty. The perfect picture of an abandoned building. Yet Barry followed the faint tracks in the dust, leading up a spiral staircase and onto a second floor. The second floor was even less impressive; if anything, it appeared to be falling apart. There were holes in the floor that were dark and ominous. Batman hadn’t mentioned a basement, yet the holes fell much further than just one story. 

Weak skylight filtered from even further up. A ladder led up to an attic space, too cramped to let a full grown man stand up straight. It was there that Barry found what he was looking for. Nestled in between crates and tarps was a button, and upon pushing that button a door appeared. Opening the door Barry found a thin ladder, leading to the dark unknown. 

Barry climbed downwards. 

…

Barry wasn’t sure what he expected in his arch nemesis’ evil lair, but a baby wasn’t it. 

The child stared at him with solemn green eyes, cute button nose wrinkling in distaste when Barry lowered himself into a crouch to greet him. 

The baby was old enough to walk on his own two unsteady feet, toddling dangerously past Barry towards another room. There was a faint green glow from the second room so Barry followed curiously. 

A 7 foot tube filled with some sort of liquid was in the second room. The toddler waddled to the far side of the room, reaching with practiced movement into a sink that was there. Barry watched as a bottle materialized in his hands, a bright flash of light temporarily blinding Barry for a moment. The toddler continued to ignore Barry and waddled back to the first room, plopping down in front of a large screen on his diaper clad butt. 

The screen flickered to life, the looming face of Thaddeus Thawne gazing towards the child. 

“Welcome back, Thaddeus Junior.” The villain greeted the child, “Today’s lesson will now commence.”

Barry swallowed down his own nausea, searching the room with the newfound light for any clues on to this child’s identity and what he had to do with Thaddeus Thawne. 

Handwritten notes were tucked away in a manilla envelope, handwriting differing from note to note. There were at least four years worth of notes, though the child could not have been older than two. It seemed that Thawne had enlisted the assistance of multiple child psychologists to study his little project. Even further back were notes on the child’s...manufacturing, citing a ‘ _ Bart Allen’ _ as a genetic donor. Barry felt sick at the notion.

Barry was brought back to himself at Thaddeus Thawne’s voice still chattering away, instructing the silent child on the best way to immobilize a future victim and the best way to cause debilitating injuries. 

Before Barry could even control his own impulse, he had sped over, smashing a fist into the screen. Sparks flew from the machine, generating the first sound from the child that Barry had heard. It was a high pitched scream, followed by the child scrambling backwards and cowering. He watched Barry with shocked eyes, clouded with fear and pooling with tears. 

“Shit.” Barry cursed, shaking his head, “Sorry.”

The child just gazed back at him with frightened eyes, watching his every movement, flinching as he took a step forward. 

“I’m going to pick you up now.” Barry told Thaddeus Jr. Thadd, Barry decided inside his head. They could iron out the logistics and moral leanings of the name later. Barry wanted to grab the child and run. 

His first thought was to run to Jay and Joan, but they were vacationing in the tropics for their anniversary. Plus, he didn’t want to ruin their semi retirement by bringing a new danger to their doorfront. His second thought was to take Thadd to his own home, to surround him by the love of a heavily pregnant Iris and a young Wally. That thought was also quickly scrapped as the child tried to escape Barry’s grasp, trashing and sinking baby sharp teeth into Barry’s hand. 

“Ow.” Barry yelped, “Knock it off.”

Thadd bared his tiny teeth at Barry in answer, beginning to kick in an inhumane fashion. Great. Barry was still learning his own powers on a good day, and still helping Wally master his. The last thing they needed was to add a supercharged toddler. 

But still, Barry could not abandon the child. He could not let the child live a life of misery and abuse. He tightened both his resolve and his grip and sped to the nearest zetatube. 

…

Zetaing to the Watch Tower with a screaming, speedster toddler was easier said than done. For the scant seconds that they were in transit Barry was overcome with anxiety that somehow Thadd would get loose and end up lost forever. 

“And you just found him there?” Superman asked for what had to be the fifth time, scratching his head in bewilderment. 

“Yup.” Barry confirmed, “Just sitting in a hole in the ground.”

J’onn hummed from where he was still examining the child, having already extracted a tracking chip and a neurostimulator causing an excess amount of aggression. 

“The child’s memories confirm his account.” J’onn announced, as if Barry would just make up the story. Well, their prior experiences did say that they never could be too careful. 

“And Thaddeus Thawne just left him there?” Batman continued Superman’s questions, typing away on his own laptop for the file they were making for the child. 

“I don’t know if he meant to.” Barry answered, “He’s been stopping by once every four days. Obviously he missed a day so that’s why I went investigating.”

Batman pursed his lips, “What’s the point of having this team if you’re just going to go off half cocked without checking in?”

Barry scoffed, “Like you’re one to talk. We’re not even allowed in your city.”

Batman didn’t seem to have an answer for that, going back to sourly typing. 

J’onn cleared his throat, bringing back their attention to him, “My exam is finished. The child is good to go home with you, Flash.”

“Shit.” Barry said, eyes widening, “What am I going to tell my wife.”

“Shit!” Thadd parroted cheerfully. 

**Author's Note:**

> I joined another Flashfam discord and i love Thadd. 
> 
> Comments make me write more. thinking about making a Thadd series. 
> 
> Tumblr is gaysupersoldiers.


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